A Star In The Darkness
by XxXxDarkVampirexXxX
Summary: The trio returns to Hogwarts to complete their final year of schooling. Snape surprises Hermione when he gives her a look that clearly says that there's something he wants. Her. Worrying about her NEWTs, she isn't sure about how she's going to deal with it. It's a lot easier than she thinks it will be. For now, at least. Like in all relationships, there's trouble on the horizon...
1. Chapter 1

**Yo, so this is my first HP fanfic that isn't one of those 'reading harry potter' types. It isn't the first one I've written though, oddly enough. Anyway, just got a couple of things I wanna get out of the way. **

**First, there will be oc's in this and two of them will be a couple. I won't be making the oc's hook up with one of the HP characters, so you don't have to worry about that if you don't like it. **

**Second, there's a...person in this who isn't a normal human, wizard or not. If you don't want it to be spoiled, skip the next sentence, if you don't care, or really want to know because that persons being whatever they are will change your mind about reading this, then go ahead and read the next sentence. There will be a vampire in this and that vampire will be feeding from one of their students. No, it isn't Snape. Either way, you won't find out until later.**

**This fic mainly follows the actuall HP story line, but there are some differences. Some people who should be dead are still alive and whatnot, like Sirius and Dumbledore and whatever. But the trio still had their Horcrux hunting the previous year, so...**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or any of its characters...**

* * *

_It was dark out, raining. There weren't many people out. There never was on days like this. People didn't like the rain. But she wasn't like normal people, was she? She loved the rain, loved everything about it. She loved the sound of it; the steady patters, loved the smell it created; that earthiness, loved the feel of it as it landed on her face; cold, but pleasant. _

_That was why she was standing there now. Standing out in the pouring rain, alone, watching the blood mingle with the water as it slid away from her. __Blood...? Where did the blood come from? She couldn't remember anymore. She looked at it curiously, brow furrowed in confusion._

_She turned around, looked at her house. What was that thing in the sky? That thing barely visible because of the dark clouds and all the rain? That glowing green thing? Was that a head? It looked like a head, but without all the skin. What was that called?- a skull? And that thing coming out of the skull's mouth...was that a snake? It looked kind of scary, but was fascinating at the same time. _

_"Saya? Saya!"_

_She looked round, surprised, and saw the man, her parents' friend who lived down the street. He was running towards her, his big beer belly bouncing, staring at the skull thing in the sky. He looked scared. Why did he look scared?_

_He reached her and dropped down to his knees in front of her. "Saya! Are you alright?" He could see the blood on her clothes and the sidewalk, and he prayed it wasn't hers._

_She nodded silently, able to see the skull reflected in his dark eyes. _

_"Where are your parents? Saya, where are your mum and dad? Where is your brother?" He spoke slowly, but urgently at the same time._

_She blinked, confused. "Okaa-san and Papa are inside and onii-chan's at school," she answered, not understanding why he was sounding so urgent, so worried. (Mum and dad/big brother)_

_"Wait here," he said, placing his hands on her small shoulders. "Wait right here, okay?"_

_She nodded again and watched him go inside the house. It suddenly started raining harder and thunder sounded in the distance. She had always been told to go inside when it started to thunder, so that she didn't get hurt. So that was what she did. _

_She walked into her house and heard a cry of shock. Curious, her small feet carried her over to the source of the cry. It had been the man, the friend who had told her to wait outside._

_She looked past him, and saw blood on the floor. Why was there blood on the floor? Was it the same blood that the rain had just washed off her? Then she saw the hand. She moved slightly, wanting to see what the hand belonged to, curiosity getting the best of her, as it did to all children. _

_And that was when she saw them. Her parents were lying there on the living room floor, surrounded by blood. Their eyes were open wide along with their mouths, shock evident on both faces. Their clothes were slashed, her mother nearly naked. Clearly something very wrong had been done to her. She didn't really understand the terms 'sex' and 'rape' yet, but she knew that the latter was very bad. _

_She couldn't help it, she screamed. She was scared, terrified. The man turned and came to her immediately, pulling her close to him, burying her face in his torso so that she couldn't see the horrid scene behind him...but it was too late. She'd already seen it._

_"What happened to them?" she questioned. "What happened to okaa-san? What happened to papa? Mommy! Daddy!" She was crying now. "I want onii-chan! Je veux onii-chan!" (mum, dad/ big brother/ I want big brother)_

_"Shhh, don't worry...everything will be alright. Everything will be fine." But how was he going to explain it to her? How was he going to explain to this five year old girl that her parents were dead and that they would never be coming back...?_

_Who had done this? Who had tortured these kind people? Killed these kind people? Death Eaters... He knew it was the Death Eaters that had done this. They had left their mark in the sky above the house, hadn't they? The Dark Mark... But why here? This was the reason why he had left the UK in the first place. Voldemort and his Death Eaters had been plaguing the place. That was the whole reason why he had come here to Canada. But never in a million years had he expected to see the Dark Mark in this country._

_But even then, Voldemort had disappeared what?- four years ago? He had heard of the whole 'Harry Potter, the Boy Who Lived' thing from his own parents, who still lived in England. They were pure-blood, and had been left alone for the most part, but had been keeping him, their son, updated. _

_And now..._

_Now this innocent five year old was an orphan. Now he was going to have to tell her brother, her older brother who was off at school that he was an orphan. _

_"Come on, Saya. Let's...let's go outside." He led the small girl out of the house and pulled out his wand. He glanced around him, saw no one was there, and sent of a Patronus. It would reach his cousin in a moment, tell her to get in contact with the Aurors from the Ministries of both Canada and Britain. It would also tell her to send their owl over to him with some parchment, so that he could write to the poor girl's brother and tell him what had happened._

_He looked down at the tiny child against him. She was shivering, soaking wet from the rain, and he felt a pang of pain. This family had never done anything wrong. They had been such kind people. His two friends, the ones that lay dead inside didn't even know anything about Voldemort or the Death Eaters. They barely even understood magic. They were Muggles. _

_But this family, they had already lost a child. Saya's older sister had died not six months ago. What was this? Why them? Such good people. Why was it the innocent that always had to suffer...?_

* * *

**Twelve Years Later**

It was a dark, stormy afternoon on the first of September, and Harry Potter, Ron Weasley, Hermione Granger, and Ginny Weasley were seated together in a compartment on the Hogwarts Express. They were going back to school.

The war had ended a couple of months ago, and the majority of the summer had been devoted to restoring Hogwarts castle. Minister for Magic: Kingsley Shacklebot, and Headmaster of Hogwarts: Albus Dumbledore, had spent quite a bit of time speaking over the summer, and had decided that all students as the school were going to be repeating a year, rather than moving on.

As Voldemort and his Death Eaters had spent the past year, torturing, terrorizing, and killing, the students hadn't really been able to study, to learn properly. They figured that if students continued with their schooling, they were likely going to do very poorly, if not fail. It seemed only fair to allow them to receive another chance...especially those who had had OWL's or NEWT's.

Hermione had been thrilled when she had heard this, for this meant that she could actually take her final exams, something she really hadn't wanted to miss, despite the fact that she had chosen to go off with Harry to look for those Horcruxes.

Kingsley had stated that anyone who had participated in the Final Battle could become an Auror without having to worry about NEWT's, and though that meant that Harry could become and Auror immediately, he had decided to return to school instead. He wanted to get his dream job through his own hard work, not because of Voldemort or the scar on his forehead.

Ron, on the other hand, hadn't wanted to come back to Hogwarts. He had wanted to take Minister Shacklebot up on his offer and become a dark wizard catcher right away. It had taken quite a bit of coaxing and pleading to get him to come back.

Harry, Ron, and Hermione were going to do their seventh year, along with Neville, Dean, Seamus, Lavender and Parvati...even though some of them had already partially done that year.

"It looks like it's going to thunder," said Ginny, breaking the slightly awkward silence.

"Yeah, it does," said Harry, clearly glad at the attempt at conversation.

Ron and Hermione, who had been dating since the end of the Final Battle, had recently broken up. They just...weren't right for one another, something everyone other than Ron had realized. Hermione was far more mature than girls her own age, and soon after beginning to date Ron, she had realized that it wasn't a boy she needed.

Hermione needed a man in her life. Someone she could sit in silence and read with. Someone she could have intelligent, stimulating conversations with. Ron Weasley could do neither of these. Hell, all Ron could think about was Quidditch, food, sex, and more Quidditch! Hermione could deal with that for a little while, but definitely not twenty four/seven!

"Pumpkin Pasty, Hermione?"

With a smile and a word of thanks, she accepted the pasty from Harry, unwrapped it, and carefully bit in. But where would she find that man? The one who would be able to keep up with her intellectually. At Hogwarts? Maybe... Probably not...

* * *

Albus Dumbledore was seated behind his large wooden desk in the Headmaster's office of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Over his half-moon spectacles, he carefully peered at the four sitting in front of him. A new student, two new teachers, and an old teacher who was making a very...delicate return.

This was going to be a very interesting school year. Yet he hoped nothing bad happened. Harry and his friends deserved to be normal students for once. Perhaps they would be lucky this time. After all, the Dark Lord Voldemort had already been defeated, and most of his Death Eaters, captured. In fact, unless something happened that had to do with the four in his office, this year was going to be very quiet.

Perhaps a bit _too _quiet. Maybe it would be better if something occurred. He had to get his entertainment from somewhere, didn't he?

* * *

As the train continued on its way to Hogwarts, the four teens sat, deep in a discussion about Sirius Black. Sirius had survived their...adventure at the Ministry in their fifth year, but only just. That incident had greatly changed both him and Harry. During the Final Battle, Sirius had had yet another close call, and Harry was now admitting just how close he had been to losing his godfather. Again.

"But Sirius is fine now, isn't he?" asked Hermione, who had yet to see the man.

Harry nodded. "Yeah, he's doing much better thanks to that potion he's been drinking."

"Kingsley giving him a full pardon must have helped too," added Ron.

"Definitely. I mean, at least he can finally walk around outside without having to worry about getting arrested." Harry laughed. "He says that as soon as he's allowed out of bed, the first thing he's gonna do is stroll around the Ministry with a smile, then fix up his bike."

The other three laughed too, glad that Sirius was finally a free man. He definitely deserved it.

"Apparently Sirius isn't the only free man," said Ginny. "You guys hear about Snape?"

"What about my godfather?"

The four looked over in surprise, only to see Draco Malfoy standing at the entrance to their compartment, flanked on either side not by Crabbe and Goyle, but by Theodore Nott and Blaise Zabini.

"What do you want, Malfoy?" questioned Ron with a glare.

The other three rolled their eyes, wishing Ron would grow up and actually start acting his age. They had all managed to put the past behind them, and while fixing up the castle, begun to speak to the three Slytherins, actually getting to know them a bit. Draco had become a good friend now and Nott and Blaise weren't half bad either.

"Draco, Zabini, Nott," said Harry in greeting. "Good to see you."

"We were just saying how Snape's been given a pardon and won't be, y'know, arrested or anything," explained Ginny, referring to her earlier comment.

"Ah. Speaking of Uncle Severus, did you know he finally woke up?"

"He did? How is he feeling?" asked Hermione, curious. None of them had seen Snape since that fateful night.

"Good," replied Draco. "He woke up about a month ago, and his magic came back two weeks ago. He was allowed out of bed a couple of days after that. He's been a bit grumpy, but," he shrugged, "that's Uncle Severus for you."

"We're glad to hear he's alright," said Harry genuinely. It had been he and Hermione who had saved his life, and Harry had vouched for him to ensure that he wasn't punished for what he had done. It was because of those memories that Harry now held great respect for the man. Perhaps one day Snape would allow bygones to be bygones.

The Slytherins spoke with the Gryffindors for a while longer, before heading back to their own compartment somewhere further up the train.

"Finally..." muttered Ron, who had been staring moodily out of the window the entire time.

Ginny turned to glare at her brother. "Ron, seriously, grow up!"

"Hmph! You can't blame me if I don't trust those snakes!" he exclaimed. "Just because they _apologized_, you guys are all friendly with them now!" He showed no sign of stopping what was soon going to become a rant.

"Ron, catch." Harry tossed him a Chocolate Frog. The girls gave him a grateful look, as this, effectively shut Ron up.

The train continued its progress up north, the sky darkening as time passed and storm clouds rolled in. Though it was only three in the afternoon, the lanterns had already been lit. A half hour later, lightning began to flash, but since the storm was still quite far away, they couldn't hear the thunder.

By four o' clock however, it was pouring outside, rain cascading down the windows on the train. Thunder clashed ferociously and the bright flashes of lightning came closer and closer to the train, becoming more frequent as it did so.

The Chocolate Frog had improved Ron's mood, making him forget the visit from the three Slytherins and become far more cheerful. Pleasant, if not random conversation had continued.

"So, Head Girl, no more sharing a dormitory with Parvati and Lavender," laughed Ginny. "Lucky. You get your own bedroom, sitting room _and_ bathroom!"

Hermione laughed now too. "You have a chance of becoming Head Girl next year, Ginny."

The redhead shrugged. "Maybe, but I'd rather be Quidditch Captain. I think I'd make a good captain, right, Captain?"

Now it was Harry's turn to laugh. When he stopped, he said, "I'm definitely going to need to hold tryouts. We've only got a Keeper, Seeker, Chaser and Beater. I'm going to need to find another Beater and two Chasers."

Ron frowned as he tried to remember who Harry was referring to. He, of course, was the Keeper, Harry was the Seeker, Ginny the Chaser, and...Peaks the Beater. "What happened to Demelza, and Coote? I know Katie's already left, but..."

"I don't know if they'll be coming back," explained Harry. "I...I don't even know if they're...okay." There were still many families who hadn't resurfaced after the war, and Demelza and Coote were just the beginning.

"Oh." Ron gave a nod, unwrapped yet another Chocolate Frog, and shoved it into his mouth, whole. Once he had swallowed, he focused on the card in his hand. "Hey, it's me!"

When everyone laughed, the tension faded and a light, friendly air filled the compartment. Turning to look out the rain soaked window, Hermione couldn't help but feel that this year was going to be very different compared to all the others. But she felt as if it was going to be a good different, one where they weren't going to need to save the world or anything similar to that.

And she was right. This year at Hogwarts was going to be very strange indeed.

* * *

**And that's the first chapter. I suppose it sounds more like a prologue though, huh? Though I'm adding oc's this is still a SxH fic. I know it doesn't really seem like it though. I promise it will. Eventually. The next chapter will probably be the Sorting and the first day of classes, but I have no idea when it'll be up. I'm working on a million different things, have school work to do, and suffer from writer's block and insomnia, so updates are always slow. I swear my AN's will never be this long again. I hope. **

**If anyone has any questions, feel free to ask in a review or PM and I'll see if I can answer. Constructive criticism is annoying but welcome. Flames and trolls will be ignored and can burn in Hell for all I care. Looking forward to reviews! Laterz! **


	2. Author's Note

Yo, okay, sorry, this isn't a new chapter. I just have a question for you guys. As you probably know, Hermione's gonna be with Snape, but what about Ron and Harry?

Should Harry be with Ginny or Draco? I prefer to have him with Ginny, since I've never written a slash before, and HarryxDraco's actually okay as long as you don't want…detail.

I was planning on making Ron single, but should I change that? If yes, then who's he dating?

And then there's Ginny. If you all want Harry to be with Draco, then who's she gonna be with?

I'd rather have you all pick, so that it's, y'know…not surprising or something when…y'know. Do I really gotta explain it?

I'm working on the next chapter, but I can't continue properly until I've got all this figured out, so please respond. Please. Laterz!


	3. Chapter 3

**Yo. Okay, sorry about the wait. This chapter's like eight pages longer than my usual ones, so it took me some time to write. Thank you to all readers so far. Polls are still open to decide the couples. If you don't know what I'm talking about, refer to the previous chapter, or AN note, to be specific. Warning: This chapter is mainly dialogue, so prepare yourself for a crap load of talking.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or any of its characters.**

The never ending ceiling in the Great Hall was as dark and stormy as it was outside, with lightning flashing and rain falling but never fully reaching. The House tables filled with students from all seven years. There would be extra students in the first years because of the fact that not only were they repeating a school year, but new eleven year old first years would be joining them. The Head Table was packed with teachers, with only two seats that were unoccupied, belonging to Hagrid and Professor McGonagall, who were, of course, with the new first years.

As Prefects and Head Girl, Ron, Ginny and Hermione had to supervise, so Harry took a seat at Gryffindor Table near Neville, Seamus and Dean. They chatted while they waited, talking about the summer, with Harry pretending to enjoy all the praise he was receiving for defeating Voldemort.

Finally the others arrived and joined Harry at the table, with Ron sitting down next to him and the girls across them. They began talking to the others at the table, greeting them and so forth.

Harry glanced over his shoulder at the Head Table behind him. He recognized all but two faces, though that wasn't really what he was focused on. He was more concerned about one of the two empty seats. "Where's Hagrid?" he asked. "I haven't seen him yet. Shouldn't he have been by the train to get the new first years?"

Ginny, who hadn't failed to notice the worry on Harry's face, answered. "Hagrid's fine."

"Are you sure? Why didn't I see him then?"

"One of the second years wasn't really feeling well, so he had to deal with that," replied the redhead. "That's why you didn't see him."

"Oh, thanks." Harry was clearly relieved. And his relief doubled when he saw Hagrid enter the Great Hall a moment later. But to his surprise, the half-giant didn't go and sit down. Instead, he remained standing by the Hall's massive doors. "What's he doing?"

The others looked over too, to see what Harry was talking about, exchanged glances, then shrugged. Hagrid, realizing he was being watched, looked at them and with a large smile and waved merrily. Though they waved back, they were still slightly confused.

Soon enough Professor McGonagall came in, leading a line of new first years. She placed a small stool at the front, set the Sorting Hat down on top of it, then moved back. Everyone stared at it, waiting. A rip opened near the brim and the Hat began to sing. The students and teachers were quite glad that the song didn't contain a warning this time around.

Once the first years had been sorted, Albus Dumbledore got to his feet, a wide smile on his wizened face. "Welcome and welcome back to a wonderful new year at Hogwarts! Before we lose our minds in our fantastic feast, there are a few announcements I would like to make."

A few of the smiles turned into frowns, as the students suddenly began to wonder whether the headmaster was about to say something that was going to freak them out. Now that Voldemort was gone, they didn't want to have to worry about anything other than exams. Dumbledore seemed to notice their fear.

"Not to worry," he said with a chuckle. "They are simply normal beginning of the school year announcements. First of all, the Forbidden Forest is off limits to _all_ students."

Harry, Ron and Hermione exchanged smirks, but at the same time, Harry knew that he _never ever_ wanted to return to the forest again. Yet he had feeling that he wasn't going to be lucky.

"A list of banned objects is attached to Mr Filch's office door for anyone wishing to take a look. And, as usual, anyone wishing to try out for their House Quidditch team should let their Head of House know."

A lot of Gryffindors glanced up or down the table at Harry, whose Captain's badge sat gleaming on his chest, leaving him wondering just how bad _this_ year's tryouts were going to be.

Dumbledore continued. "Now, there are some people that need to be introduced and for one, reintroduced. First, please welcome back Professor Severus Snape, who will be resuming his old post of Potions Master and Head of Slytherin House."

There was a moment of hesitation before the students began to applaud. But beneath the applause, there were many murmurs, most of surprise. The last anyone had heard of Snape, was that he was dead. The fact that he was back was shocking indeed. At least that meant that Slughorn was gone. No more Slug Club.

Snape gave them all a curt nod, not bothering to acknowledge them in any other way. He knew what they were all thinking and he didn't care. At least, that was what he was telling himself. ..._Why did he come back to Hogwarts?_

"Next," continued Dumbledore, "Professor Gillian Russell, our new Muggle Studies teacher."

A woman in her late twenties to early thirties, seated on McGonagall's left, got to her feet and waved at the students, who were applauding her politely. Though the boys did seem a little more...exuberant. Gillian was tall, thin and had some lovely...assets. She had a pair of flirtatious blue eyes and blonde curls that tumbled down to the middle of her back. As she waved, she showed them her bright white smile. Then, sitting back down, she sent Snape a not so subtle wink. Hermione disliked her already.

Dumbledore went on. "And now we have Professor Shinjiro Narukami, who has kindly accepted the post for Defence Against the Dark Arts." He gestured at a young man seated on Snape's right.

This man, who had to have been around twenty-three, smiled kindly. He had black hair that nearly reached his shoulders, and from beneath his long anime style bangs, they saw a pair of intense green eyes.

"And finally, there is yet another student that needs to be welcomed to our fantastic school."

The students looked around at one another, confused. Had they forgotten a first year or something? How could that be possible? It had never happened before. Dumbledore however, seemed to know what they were all thinking.

The old wizard gestured over to the Great Hall's doors and said, "Miss Saya Beaumont will be completing her final year here at Hogwarts, and will be joining...Gryffindor House."

Everyone looked over simultaneously. Standing by the Hall's large doors was a girl. She looked small, but maybe that was because she was standing next to Hagrid. She was dressed as all the others in the Hall, with robes over her Muggle clothes, but her wavy black hair was very long and seemed to have highlights in it. It went down to her thighs and was highlighted in a purple that brought out her stunning violet eyes.

The Gryffindors looked at one another, shrugged, and began clapping and cheering the way they had for the first years that had joined their House. How they hadn't noticed the girl, whose robes had the Gryffindor crest on them was beyond them.

Saya glanced up at Hagrid, clearly nervous, and the half-giant gave her a reassuring sort of smile. With a nod, she crossed the Hall, heading over to the Gryffindor table. The students at said table suddenly seemed to realize how awkward it would be for the new girl to sit with all the first years, and began shifting around to make room.

Saya soon found herself seated between Hermione and Ginny, and across from Ron and Harry, facing the Head Table where all the teachers were sitting.

"Now, I have one final announcement," said Dumbledore, twinkling smile growing ever larger. "This Christmas, a special ball will be held here in the castle, to celebrate our first real time of peace in many years. All students may attend, but there are no consequences if decided not to. More will be said about this during Christmas time."

Conversation resumed immediately, with nearly everyone talking about the ball excitedly. The teachers also exchanged mutters, which clearly said that they hadn't known about the ball either.

Dumbledore chuckled. "Now everyone, please enjoy the feast."

The golden plates filled with food and the students began talking and eating, enjoying the food and conversation with each other. Ron immediately grabbed for the food, but the other three focused on the new girl. Ginny was first to introduce herself, followed by Harry, then Hermione. Ron attempted to, but with his mouth so full of chicken, Saya was unable to understand him. Ginny, who'd been dealing with all this on a daily basis, translated.

They then began to eat as well, and after a moment, Hermione spoke. "Hey, Saya, if you don't mind me asking... I mean, your nationality..." She trailed off. It was just odd because Saya's first name said one thing, her last name said something else, and her accent said something different all together, because it didn't match either of her names.

Saya however, smiled. "I'm half Japanese and half French, but I was born and raised in Canada, hence my name and accent and whatnot. Though to me, you're all the ones with accents."

Harry laughed, then sobered. "So, um..." He wasn't sure how to ask this next thing without sounding prejudiced. It wasn't as if it really mattered, because it didn't. He was just curious.

Saya seemed to know what he was thinking though, and answered. "I'm a Muggleborn," she said with another small smile.

"So am I," smiled Hermione.

"I know." Seeing how she'd confused them all, Saya decided to explain. "Your...story is known in Canada too, Harry. It's definitely not as...famous as here, but..." she trailed off with a shrug.

Harry sighed then decided it was time to change the topic. "So, what school did you go to before coming here? I mean, Dumbledore said you'd be finishing your seventh year here."

"I went to Snowfield Academy for...huh. I don't actually remember the school's full name. Everyone just called it Snowfield."

"So...why did you come all the way out here just to do your last year?" asked Ginny curiously.

Saya frowned. "I just...couldn't go back. I..." She looked at Harry. "I know what being an orphan is like."

"Your parents are dead?" questioned Ron in a rather untactful way.

"Oui. (Yes.) My older sister, Élize, died when I was four. She had cancer."

"Oh my. What kind?" As a Muggleborn, Hermione obviously knew what cancer was. Harry too, knew, but the two Weasleys had no idea.

"Stomach cancer," replied Saya. "She'd always been sort of weak and stuff, from what I remember. She was ten when she died. Her birthday had just passed. My parents..."

"They were killed," stated Harry. He saw the look on the girl's face, and he recognized it as the same look that occasionally crossed his own face. Saya confirmed that.

"They were, yes. I was five when it happened and for a very long time, I didn't remember it."

"Wait, you were _there_ when it happened?" questioned Hermione and Ginny in unison.

"Yes." She paused, hesitated. "They were killed by Death Eaters."

"...What?"

The black haired girl gave a little nod. "I was there, I saw it happen, but they wiped my memory."

"Obliviate?" asked Ginny in clarification.

"Un. (Yeah.) But recently, the memory sort of...resurfaced."

"How do you know it was Death Eaters?" asked Harry in confusion.

"They left the Dark Mark above my house. I mean, of course I didn't know what that was at the time. It was only a few years ago that I found out."

"But...what were Death Eaters doing all the way in Canada?" wondered Ron.

Nobody seemed to have the answer to this, and noting that not only Saya, but Harry now seemed upset, Hermione decided to change the subject a little.

"So, how did you find out about Hogwarts?" she asked curiously.

"My brother came here."

"Oh, so you aren't the only one in your family who can do magic."

"No, my onii-chan, my older brother was a wizard too. (Big brother) He only came here because he made a friend over the summer before, who was going to be coming here." She smiled. "Emmanuel really seemed to like it here."

"I don't remember there being a Gryffindor named Emmanuel," said Ron slowly, looking at his sister and friends for conformation."

"That's not surprising," said Saya with a little laugh. "Emmanuel finished school when I was seven, which would have been at least four or so years before you three started here. Plus, onii-chan wasn't in Gryffindor." (Big brother)

"Siblings can be put in other Houses?" wondered Harry, clearly only thinking about the Weasleys and the Creevey brothers.

"Of course they can, Harry!" exclaimed Hermione. "Look at Parvati and Padma, and Sirius and Regulus."

"Oh yeah," replied Harry sounding a little sheepish. "How'd I forget that? So what house was your brother in, then?"

Saya hesitated. "...Slytherin."

There was a momentary silence. The black haired girl had heard about the animosity between Gryffindor and Slytherin from her brother, and she wasn't sure how these guys would react to all this.

"Wait, wait. A _Muggleborn _Slytherin?" questioned Ginny, confused. "Is that even possible?"

"It's really rare, actually. But according to Emmanuel, it does happen sometimes."

"Did anyone in Slytherin _know _he was a Muggleborn?" asked Harry, pouring himself some more pumpkin juice.

"His close friend knew, and the Head of House, Professor Snape knew too."

"_Snape_? Wait, he was actually around back then?"

A little confused, Saya nodded. "Yeah. He was twenty-one when he started working here, and that was onii-chan's first year here too. He told me that his Head of House was the first one to realize he was a Muggleborn, but he never told anyone else."

"So...what did the other Slytherins think he was?" asked Hermione. "They usually know what your lineage is by the last names."

"Well, Emmanuel was fortunate to have a French surname."

"What does that have to do with it?" wondered Ron, clearly not getting it.

Hermione however, did. "Oh, and the French usually go to BeauxBatons, not Hogwarts."

Saya nodded again, and sampled some mashed potatoes. "Oui, and he knew how bad it would be if the Slytherins figured it out, so he pretended to be a Pureblood, who decided on coming to Hogwarts, rather than go to the school in France."

"And no one figured it out?" questioned Ginny. "I mean, the Slytherins are pretty smart."

"Onii-chan said that whenever people started getting suspicious, Professor Snape would throw them off."

"Huh..." Hermione was honestly a little surprised at that. She hadn't really expected Snape to conceal the secret that Emmanuel had spent so long trying to hide. Hadn't he told the school that Remus was a werewolf just because he was angry? "So, what's your brother doing now?"

To the surprise of Harry, Ron, Hermione and Ginny, and deep sadness came into Saya's violet eyes. She didn't answer them at first, just sort of sat there as if in a stupor.

"He's dead," she said finally. She looked at them. "He died last Christmas."

"Wha-? How? What happened?"

Ginny nudged her brother. "Too many questions, Ron!" she hissed.

"It's alright," said Saya with a shrug. "He, like my parents, was killed by a Death Eater. He was staying in England, looking for another job, actually, and this Death Eater came to his apartment and killed him there. I was at Snowfield, doing my last year."

"Oh, I thought this was the first time you were doing your seventh year," said Ginny. "I thought we were the same age."

Saya shook her head. "No, this is my second attempt at year seven. See, when he died, I'd lost my entire family now, so I left the school and went to stay with a friend." She paused, hesitated slightly. "When I thought about going back to school in February, something...else happened, and I just..."

"Couldn't," stated Harry. He knew that feel. He knew how horrible it could feel. How...alone you could feel.

"...Oui. Then during the summer, when I found out how students here at Hogwarts will be repeating a year, I thought that maybe I should just come here. Even though I was behind, I'd still be with people the same age as me, no offence, Ginny."

"None taken. I get it. Go on."

She complied. "I also wanted to come to the place that Emmanuel had loved so much. So I wrote to Headmaster Dumbledore and Minister Kingsley, to explain, and they said yes."

"I'm sorry for everything that happened," said Hermione.

"Merci." (Thank you) As if to change the subject, Saya looked up at the High Table. "That's Professor Snape, isn't it? The one next to Professor Dumbledore?"

The others looked too.

"Yep, that's him. Greasy git."

"Ron!"

Saya frowned. "You know, you guys don't really seem concerned with the fact that you've got a couple of new teachers." And to her surprise, they all laughed.

"We're used to it," replied Harry with a chuckle. "We had a new DADA professor every year we were here."

"Seriously?"

"Yeah." He glanced over his shoulder at Professor Narukami. "I wonder what's special about him?"

"What do you mean?" asked Saya rather quickly.

"Well, each Defence professor we've had, has been...different, in some way." He held up a finger. "Professor Quirrell had Voldemort on the back of his head." He caught the girl's shudder, but continued and held up a second finger. "Lockhart was...Lockhart."

"Lockhart? As in Gilderoy Lockart? The guy who wrote all those books?"

Ron rolled his eyes. "Don't tell me you're a fan of his!?"

"Hell no! A girl in my dorm was always fawning over him though, and she had all his books and everything. It was actually pretty annoying."

"Well, you know he didn't actually write those books?" said Ron.

"He didn't?"

"Nope." And they very quickly explained.

Harry then continued with his count and held up a third finger. "Remus, or Professor Lupin, technically, was a werewolf."

Saya looked rather surprised at this. "You had a _werewolf_ as a teacher?"

"Yeah, but we didn't find that out until the end of the school year."

Harry held up a fourth finger now. "Moody wasn't really Moody, but a Death Eater polyjuiced as him."

"Mad Eye Moody? Alastor Moody?"

"You know him?"

"Yeah, he caught this serial Muggle killer back in Toronto a while back. I was little, but I remember that."

"You learn something new every day," smiled Hermione, remembering the now dead Auror.

"Year five," said Harry, holding up a fifth finger, "was Umbridge."

The other three groaned. "Worst. Year. Ever."

"She wouldn't let us use Magic!"

"Bitch was crazy!"

"Ron!"

Harry held up a sixth finger. "Year six was Snape and we're not even going to bother adding seven, since we weren't really here and that year was...crazy."

Saya frowned. "Wow, that's...wow."

Ginny laughed then surprised everyone by frowning as well. "Don't tell me she's going to do that all year," she muttered.

"What? Oh." Hermione followed Ginny's gaze to the Head Table, where Professor Russell, even though she was separated from him by two people, was very obviously trying to flirt with Snape. The girl could tell that Snape was trying to ignore the woman, but she didn't seem to notice. McGonagall didn't seem too pleased either, considering, and Dumbledore was just giving off his twinkling smile, clearly aware of what it was that was happening.

The pudding suddenly appeared and Harry immediately reached for his favourite treacle tart, while Ron grabbed for some cake. Hermione, Ginny and Saya all hesitated for a moment, before deciding. Desert had distracted them from what was going on at the Head Table.

Severus scowled into his empty plate. _How long was that woman going to continue attempting to catch his eye? Couldn't she see that he didn't give a damn? _

"Severus."

For the first time, Severus was glad to hear Albus' voice. "Yes, Albus?"

"Shinjiro will be needing that potion. I'm sure you know about the one I'm speaking about. Will you be willing to make it for him?"

"Brew," he muttered. "Brew." He sighed. "Very well." He glanced at Shinjiro. "It should be ready in a week's time."

Shinjiro seemed surprised when he heard this. "A week? I was under the impression it took at least two weeks to brew?"

"It does. However, I anticipated this when I first heard you would be joining us, and I began brewing it then."

"I apologize for the trouble," said Shinjiro rather formally.

Severus shook his head slightly. "Brewing potions is one thing I do not mind doing."

Albus laughed heartily. "Well, I'm glad that's all settled! Custard, Minerva?"

Hermione discretely glanced back up at the Head Table...again. Why did she keep looking up there? Why did she keep looking up at him? He'd been sitting there for years, but...why now? He looked at her suddenly, right in the eyes, and the blow it sent to her felt almost physical. She forced herself not to blink as she met his gaze.

The brown haired girl felt something in her stomach, or was it her gut? It was all...how could she explain it? She had never felt like that before, but it really did feel as if she'd been punched. Yet it was a good feeling. A very good one. His already dark eyes, seemed even darker as they started at her, and he didn't look away until Dumbledore nudged him to get his attention.

When he looked away, Hermione refocused on her plate, and was rather surprised to find that she was slightly breathless. She couldn't help but wonder that if he could do that to her just by looking at her, then what could he do if he did...something else? She groaned inwardly. Potions class was going to be crazy this year, wasn't it?

**And that's it for now. Sorry, like I said at the beginning, mainly talking. I just needed Saya's character to be introduced and all the exposition to be done with...sort of. Some of you may already know where I'm going with this though. Huh...I was gonna say something else, but I can't remember what it was. Dunno when the next chapter will be up. Poll results are inconclusive so far, so please vote. I'm gonna need the couples soon. Looking forward to reviews! Laterz!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Yo, sorry about how long this took. I wasn't sure what to write. Probably already mentioned this, but insomnia and writer's block don't mix. Add culminating and exams, well… Anyway, thanks to all readers so far!**

**As for poll results, at the moment, we're tied three each for HarryxGinny, and RonxLavender. If no one else votes, I'll end up sticking with those.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or any of its characters…**

The next morning, the Great Hall greeted them with nothing but sunshine. The storm from the previous day had clearly moved away, leaving them with a warm pure summer day. Sleepy students gathered along their House Tables for breakfast, while equally tired teachers (even though they didn't show it) did the same along the Head Table.

Harry, Ron, Hermione and Ginny entered the Hall together and joined Saya at the Gryffindor table, where she had saved them seats. No one spoke at first, with everyone needing their personal fixes first. Harry and Hermione would refuse to speak without having some coffee; Ron, his pumpkin juice; Ginny, her orange juice. Once they'd had a cup each, Ron spoke.

"I'm surprised you found your way alright."

Saya laughed. "I just memorized the route Harry showed me last night, the one leading up to Gryffindor Tower, and just backtracked. Hogwarts is smaller than Snowfield, but definitely more complicated."

"How do you like it here so far?" asked Harry. "I mean, I know this is only your first _real_ day here, but still..."

"It's way better than Snowfield."

"It is?"

"Un. (yeah) It's..." She paused and looked around the Hall at the other tables, up at the blue sky-like ceiling. "It's got something that Snowfield never had."

"What's that?"

"Hogwarts has this...hominess to it. Like a..." she sighed. "I don't really know how to explain it. It's a sort of...comfort, y'know?"

Though Ron, Hermione and Ginny frowned, Harry seemed to understand. Like him, Saya was now an orphan, and from what he knew about her so far, she didn't really have much of a home anymore. Clearly, unlike him, her school hadn't felt like much of a home either. And that was what he told her. He knew he was on the mark when she smiled gently.

"Oh! Here, timetables. Professor McGonagall passed them out just before you guys came in." She handed them over.

"No!" exclaimed Ron suddenly.

"What? What's wrong?" asked Ginny.

"We've got Potions first!"

"You don't like Potions?" asked Saya in confusion.

Now it was Harry's turn to laugh. "You're not going to find many people in Hogwarts who _do_ like Potions."

"And you have our dear Professor Snape to thank for that," added Ginny.

Instead of answering, Saya made a face that said that she'd just remembered something. "Emmanuel talked about that too. A long time ago." She frowned slightly. "I completely forgot."

"What did your brother think about Snape?" asked Harry curiously. "It's not every day that we get to hear about him from a Slytherin's point of view."

The violet eyed girl laughed again. "You guys already know most of it. Well, the...negative things, at least."

"There are _good_ things about _Snape_?" questioned Ron in disbelief.

Frowning slightly, Harry nudged him. "C'mon Ron, don't you remember what I said? I would've been dead by now if it wasn't for Snape."

Ron decided it was best not to answer. Saving his best friend's life multiple times or not, he still hated Snape. Hermione on the other hand, suddenly changed the topic. She knew that talking about Professor Snape for too long was never a good thing for her friends, but...she glanced up at the Head Table. What about the way he had looked at her last night? What had that been about?

Not wanting to get caught staring, she said, "So, Saya. How many OWLs did you get?"

Saya blinked, looking a little surprised. "That was a bit random. Ano...like, seven?" (um)

"What did you get? Like grade wise?"

Seeing Saya's confusion at Hermione's sudden interest in her grades, Ron, Harry and Ginny laughed."

"Hermione's a real stickler when it comes to grades."

"Oh. Well, I got a D in Divination and History of Magic." She shrugged. "I hated Divination and History was never really interesting to me, Muggle or Magical. I got an E in Transfiguration, Charms and Herbology. And I got an O in Defence Against the Dark Arts, Potions, Muggle Studies and...Astronomy."

"Why are you taking Muggle Studies when you're Muggle born?" asked Harry, remembering when Hermione had been asked the same thing.

The black haired girl laughed. "I'm not really much of an...outdoorsy person, so Care of Magical Creatures was out. Ancient Runes looked too complicated to me. And Aritmancy was, well, it's the Magical equivalent of Math." She made an odd, almost pouty expression. "I hate math."

Harry couldn't help but laugh at this. "Yeah, I get that. I always hated math class too."

"Hello Harry, Hermione, Ginny, Ronald."

Looking either around or up, the group saw Luna standing there with her usual dreamy smile.

"Luna!" Ginny twisted around to hug her friend.

"How are you doing, Luna?" asked Hermione.

"Very good, thank you. And all of you?"

"Great!" exclaimed Ron.

"Did you, uh...fix up your house yet?" asked Harry, still feeling a little guilty about the way they'd pretty much blown it apart."

"We've already finished that," replied Luna. "I, oh, hello."

It seemed like Luna had only just noticed Saya, who greeted her back. Ginny introduced them to one another and before anyone had a chance to say anything else, they realized it was time for them to head to their first class.

Harry, Ron and Hermione showed Saya the way down into the dungeons and over to where their Potions classroom was, along with Snape's office...just in case. They all took seats in the back of the room, pushing two tables together so that they could all sit together. Surprisingly, Snape didn't even say anything about that. He just raised a brow.

Since three could sit at a single table, the four were joined by none other than Draco Malfoy, who claimed that he did need a break from Slytherins every now and then, even though Zabini and Nott weren't really all that bad. Besides, according to Draco, the two of them could become rather annoying during Potions class. Harry and Hermione seemed to be alright with this, Ron...not so much. Saya didn't even know Draco, so she didn't really say anything.

The Golden Trio, as people called them, remained at their usual table, with Hermione in the middle, and Draco and Saya positioned themselves at the table they'd placed opposite them. This meant that they were facing the other three, with their backs to the front of the class, which also meant that they'd need to turn around every time Snape spoke.

Knowing Draco didn't know Saya, and vice versa, Harry told them as to who the other was and whatnot. By this time, the rest of the small class had settled down. There were only about ten or eleven students in the class. Harry, Ron, Hermione and Saya were the only Gryffindors, Draco, Nott and Zabini were the only Slytherins, Micheal Corner, Padma Patil and Terry Boot were the only Ravenclaws, and Ernie Macmillian was the only Hufflepuff.

Easily gaining their attention, Snape began the first lesson of the year with a bit of a speech/lecture, just as he always did. As this year was to be their final year, the lecture was a bit more serious than usual, but no less dramatic. At least in Snape terms. Once he was sure he had crammed the information into their heads, he assigned them a potion to brew. It was a fairly simple one, one they'd brewed in their fifth year, but he knew it was one of the potions they would have to brew during their NEWTs.

The group began to make their potion in silence, until Harry said something that caused the others to laugh. Soon after this, Saya sighed, causing the others to look at her.

"What's wrong?" asked Draco, who had heard the sigh the clearest as he was seated next to her.

The violet eyed girl laughed softly. "You don't know how good it feels to have a competent potions teacher," she said, unaware that Snape was listening. As a man who had spent many years as a spy, his senses were far more enhanced than normal people, which was actually a very good thing.

"What do you mean?" wondered Harry.

"At Snowfield, the potions master was, well...less than competent." She noticed that they all seemed confused, so she decided to explain. "How often does Professor Snape leave you all unattended?" she wondered.

_Never_, thought Severus. _Those fools would likely decimate one another if I did._

The three Gryffindors and the Slytherin exchanged glances. Had Snape _ever_ left them unattended before? They couldn't really remember. Saya seemed to realize that this was exactly what they were thinking, and laughed lightly.

"Professor Miller used to write the name of a potion and its page number down on the board. He'd never answer questions. He wouldn't even tell us what the potion we were supposed to brew was. Then half way through the class, he'd just walk out, and he wouldn't come back until maybe a couple of minutes before the bell."

Hermione frowned. "But that's so irresponsible."

"It gets worse," said Saya with a small smile. "The rest of the days, he wouldn't even be in the classroom when we got there. We'd find the instructions on the board, brew the potion, then put it on his desk at the end of the lesson and leave when the bell rang. We wouldn't see him at all."

"What? But that's- How did you even learn anything?" wondered Harry.

"We teach ourselves," replied Saya. "It's not like we had much of choice."

Harry, Ron and Hermione were suddenly reminded of Dumbledore's Army. That was pretty much what they had done too, wasn't it? When Umbridge had refused to teach them, they had taken matters into their own hands.

Though his face didn't show it, Severus too, was surprised. How had a man like that become a Potions Master? Hell, how had he even been able to keep his job?

Draco seemed to be thinking the same thing. "How was he even a teacher, then? How did he not get fired, I mean?"

"He was the Headmistress' husband," said Saya with a shrug. "She, uh, wasn't exactly the best we've had at Snowfield, from what I've heard. Apparently, she'd just ignore any and all complaints about him."

"So you had to deal with him for all six and a half years that you were there?" wondered Ron.

The black haired girl shook her head. "Iie, we had a new teacher in the sixth year. (no) I'm actually not sure about what happened to him though, she never said."

"Was your new teacher any better?" asked Harry.

Here, Saya laughed. "Definitely. Professor Narukami knew exactly what he was doing."

Severus raised a brow. _Shinjiro, eh? I was not aware that he was a Potions Master._

Harry, Ron, Hermione and Draco seemed just as surprised.

"Professor Narukami? As in our new Defence professor?"

"Yeah, that's him. He was a student at Snowfield, so he knew how...odd Potions class was. Since he actually enjoyed Potions, he worked harder and eventually become a Potions Master. He knew he had to come back to teach at Snowfield." She laughed again. "I'll never forget our first lesson with him."

"What happened?" asked Ron.

"The entire class was devoted to questions. He just stood there answering any and all of our Potions related questions. And it actually _did_ take _all_ class to do it."

The small group laughed, then sobered quickly when they saw Snape approaching. He didn't say anything, just glanced into each of their cauldrons to check on their progress. He grimaced at Ron's, was unsurprised at Hermione's, blinked at Harry's, nodded curtly at Draco's, and was faintly surprised at Saya's.

"So...what kind of teacher is Professor Narukami?" asked Hermione, trying to ignore the fact that Snape was standing so close to her that she could almost feel his body heat, even through all his clothes.

"He's a good Potions Master," replied Saya. "He tells you exactly what to do, what the potion is, checks on you and tells you what you may be doing wrong and whatnot. As for Defence, I'm not a hundred percent sure, since I left early."

"What do you mean? He taught you Defence before too?"

"Nani? Ah, hai, he did. (what? ah, yes) In my seventh year, so y'know, last year, he switched to Defence, cause the other professor retired and whatever, I dunno. Either way, from the three or four months that I was there, he seemed to know exactly what he was doing. He knows a lot about that kind of stuff..."

By this point, Snape had finished checking on everyone and had returned to his desk. With Ron asking some random question about Saya's old school, Hermione picked up her measuring glass to see if she had enough beetle eyes. As she focused on the glass, her eyes landed on Snape's.

Hermione soon found that she couldn't tear her eyes away. It was almost something magnetic between them, where he wouldn't _allow_ her to look away. She absently worked on her potion...without even looking at it. She completed it, bottled it, and she, Saya and Draco all headed up to Snape's desk together. Still, she couldn't look away.

When Saya and Draco began to walk away, she didn't. She simply stood there, staring into his dark eyes. He wasn't breaking their gazes, so she didn't either. Couldn't. Her breathing sped up considerably, not unlike the night before. It wasn't a gut punching sort of feeling this time, but maybe that was because they'd been staring at each other for so long.

In fact, neither of them looked away until Nott's sudden laugh cause Snape to finally, finally break the strange moment. Hermione stood there, very nearly panting, a distinct wetness between her legs. She couldn't believe it, yet there it was.

"Was there something you needed, Miss Granger?" asked Snape suddenly, in a usual dark, deep voice of his.

Hermione blinked, slightly surprised to find herself standing in front of Snape's desk, her hand still on her bottled potion that was resting on the dark wood. "Um...no, no, it's nothing, sir." And with his intense gaze still playing through her mind, the brunette slowly walked back over to her seat, trying to think of a way she could relieve the ache between her legs. There _was_ something she could do, but as she was sort of in class at the moment, well...

That night was the first night Hermione fantasized about Severus Snape, and the first in a rather long time that she pleasured herself. What Hermione didn't know, was this was only going to be the first of many odd nights to take place this year. Compared to what else was going to happen, her current actions were not strange in the slightest.

**Okay, so I know this was at least two pages shorter than the last chapter, but it's all I could think of at the moment. I actually just got back from an exam, and I've got another one tomorrow morning, so I figured I'd put this up before crashing. Been up all night studying, so I'm likely gonna pass out any moment now. Again, poll results, refer to AN at the beginning of chapter to find out what's going on there. Dunno when the next chapter will be up. Looking forward to reviews! Laterz!**


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